Through It All
by Kelly of the midnight dawn
Summary: Elliot and Olivia start sleeping together. Casey gets pregnant from a one night stand. Munch and Fin find a mysterious teen who claims to be a distant cousin of Olivia's. And that's just the beginning. EO
1. Chapter 1: Change

**Through It All**

**Chapter 1: Change **

**Disclaimer: I own Annie and Ellis because they are characters of my own imagination. None of the SVU characters are mine.**

**A/N: I took a break from "Finding Olivia" to write this. To the fans of that story I say have no fear because I will return to it soon.**

"Dasvedanya," a shot rang out and then there was nothing but silence. The man placed the gun back into its holster and turned back to the forest path. He pulled his jacket tight to keep out the cold Moscow night. In the distance he could already hear the wolves and other predators coming closer, drawn to the scene by the scent of blood. They would scatter the evidence and most likely burry it. He felt assured that suspicion would not come to fall on him.

As he approached his car he almost felt sorry for the family of the man that he had left in the woods. He knew the family personally; they were good people, too good. The squeaky clean reputation of the man was exactly the reason that he had to die. He almost felt sorry for the family but he was able to ignore it easily.

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It was a dark rainy November evening, just the kind of night when Olivia Benson didn't want to be pulled from her slumber at 3:00am. She swung her legs over the side of the bed and reached for a clean pair of jeans as she spoke into her cell phone "I'll be there as soon as I can. Just try and stay calm. It's gonna be all right." She never thought that she would have to provide reassurance to the man on the other end of the phone. He had always been her rock but now, he was crumbling to pieces "I'm on my way right now. See you in fifteen Elliot."

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"I've eliminated him," the man spoke into the pay phone at the side of the road.

"Do you think his remaining family will pose any threat?" the voice on the other end asked.

"I can insure their silence," the man promised "One way or another."

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He fingered the photograph in his hand. He stared vacantly into space as he sat on the bench beneath the dim street light. He couldn't move, in spite of the rain and the cold, his body refused to budge from that spot. He was still in shock.

A car pulled up and parked in front of him and a familiar brunette got out. She made her way effortlessly to his side and sat down beside him, not caring about the dampness of the bench and how it seeped through the seat of her pants "Elliot," she spoke softly as she reached a hand out to him "Come on before you catch pneumonia." He held the photo out to her without saying a word. She took it and stared at the happy family picture. It was Elliot's family but another man stood in Elliot's place "Oh El," she whispered sympathetically.

"She's moved on," Elliot told her "I'm happy for her. I just didn't think it would sting so much."

Olivia wrapped her arms around him "I know," she whispered "I know."

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Casey Novak stared at the object in her hand and tried to process the information that it was attempting to convey to her. How was this possible? Could this really be happening? "Stupid ineffective condoms," she moaned. She should be happy about this, shouldn't she? She had always wanted a baby but she had been hoping that she would be married before that happened. She didn't want her baby's father to be some one night stand who she knew she would never see again.

With a sigh, Casey disposed of the home pregnancy test and went to make an appointment with her doctor. She had to make absolutely sure of this. She couldn't even remember the name of the man she had slept with. He hadn't been that important or maybe she had just been really drunk.

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A teenaged girl with long dark hair stepped off a bus in a remote upstate New York town. She pulled her thin red jacket tight against her as if that was enough to protect her from the harsh chill. She walked a few blocks in the relative darkness until she found a bench. She sat on it and shivered. It was too cold to be a runaway with nowhere to run to. She opened her backpack and pulled out the information that she had been able to get about her cousin. She read the name out loud in the stillness of the cold evening. She spoke it softly as if it were a prayer and perhaps it was, a prayer that this person would take her in and not turn her away like every other family member she had tried to contact, not that there were many to choose from. She scoffed at the dwindling remains of what had apparently once been a proud bloodline yet not one of them that she had found thus far had possessed any moral fiber whatsoever. She repeated the name over and over again "Olivia Benson."

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Olivia ushered Elliot inside her apartment "Let's get you some dry clothes," she smiled as she went to the hall closet and returned with one of many spare sets of clothing that Elliot kept at her place.

"Thanks," Elliot smiled at her as he went into the bathroom to change.

Olivia went into the kitchen to make hot chocolate. She was in the mood for something hot and she didn't want to bother with the caffeine when it was so early in the morning and she still had a good chance of getting some sleep. She glanced at the iridescent green numbers on her microwave and groaned. It was 4:00am. Good thing it was a Saturday and she could sleep late.

Elliot reappeared in the kitchen door "Hot chocolate," he smiled as he stepped towards Olivia "Thanks for being there for me tonight," he told her.

"Anytime," she returned his smile as she held out a mug of the nearly scalding hot beverage.

Elliot accepted the mug and took a long satisfying swig. He lowered the mug and extended his free arm to envelop Olivia in a one armed hug "I think," he said half to himself "That maybe its time that I start moving on too."

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"Hey kid," she was roughly shaken awake by a tall man "Get your ass up," he hissed before tossing her off the bench.

She landed and skidded a few inches very painfully on her knees. She looked up at the man "What the hell is your problem?" she asked, infuriated.

The man picked her up and through her over his shoulder "You're coming with me," he told her.

"Put me down!" she screamed as she pummeled his back with her fists.

"Shut your mouth," the man hissed as he through her into the back of his truck.

She felt her heart racing as she felt him binding her wrists and ankles with rope "Let me go," she pleaded.

"Not a chance," he told her "I need you."

She froze and tried to hold back her tears "Let me go!" she screamed again.

The man backhanded her and was about to strike a second time when he disappeared from her field of vision to be replaced by another man "Are you okay?" the newcomer asked as he pulled her from the truck.

She nodded weakly and allowed the man to help her. She saw that the first man was lying on the ground, unconscious. She looked up at her savior "Thanks," she whispered.

"No problem," the man answered as he whipped out his cell phone "I'm gonna call the local police to pick him up," he informed the girl who stood close to him.

The girl nodded then she noticed the badge that was clipped to the man's belt "Aren't you the police?" she asked.

"Yes but I'm not from around here," he answered. He unclipped the badge so that the girl could see it more clearly "NYPD Detective Odafin Tutuola at your service," he smiled. There was just something about this girl that Fin liked, something familiar about her "My partner and I came up here to help the local cops on a case," he looked to the ground at the unconscious man "And I think we just solved it."

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"What do you mean move on?" Olivia asked, pulling away from Elliot just slightly. She had a good idea that she knew what he meant but she didn't want to jinx it.

"Liv," he said softly "I've been such an idiot, pushing you away and you keep coming back to help me when I need it. I think I finally realized tonight that I have to let you know what I feel or one of these days I'll push you away and you won't come back."

"I'm listening," she told him as she led him to the couch.

"Olivia," he whispered as he pulled her as close as possible "I'm madly in love with you."

She pulled back, that hadn't been what she had expected. The admission had been so sudden. She loved him but she was pretty sure that this was just overcompensation for the shock of seeing someone else standing beside his ex-wife in a family photo "Elliot," she faced him "Maybe it's too soon for you to be saying things like this. Maybe you should think about what you're saying and the implications that it has," she hated how cold she sounded.

"I have thought about it," he told her. He framed her face with his hands "I've been thinking about it for such a long time and I've come too close to losing you too many times to not tell you. I can't believe I've waited this long. I love you."

She saw it in his eyes and believed him. Somehow looking into his eyes she felt compelled to reveal the secret truth that she had carried with her for years now "I love you too."

Slowly as if drawn by some unseen force, their lips came together in a tentative kiss which quickly deepened. The kiss quickly turned into a tangled, frenzied, passionate trip to second base then third and finally rounding home plate with shouts of ecstasy from both.

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She shoved a handful of French fries into her mouth. They weren't the best that she'd ever had but she was starving and didn't care. She sat across from her new detective friend and his partner. The two detectives had gone in search of an all night diner just for her. She smiled as she took a bite of her burger.

Munch and Fin watched her carefully. This girl shoved food away like she hadn't eaten in days and looking at her it wasn't an unreasonable assumption. She was practically skin and bones. Neither knew how long she had been on the run but from what they could tell, she had been on the run for a while.

Munch was the first to speak "So what's your name?" he asked.

The girl finished chewing the food in her mouth before answering "Annie."

"Do you have a last name Annie?" Fin asked. He didn't know what it was about this girl but she seemed so familiar and yet he knew that he had never met her before.

Annie shook her head "Just Annie," she said firmly although she looked down at the table.

"How old are you Annie?" Munch asked. He too felt that there was something familiar about this girl.

"I'm fourteen," Annie answered with a small smile.

Munch sighed, wishing that Elliot and Olivia were there. Elliot and Olivia were really great at talking to kids. He smiled in return "Fourteen's a great age," was all he said.

"Where's your family?" Fin asked Annie.

Annie looked down again "My mom and dad died four years ago," she said, her eyes firmly focused on her plate "I went to go stay with my great aunt but she died a couple months later. I just packed up and started running," she reached into her bag "My great aunt had a family tree and I took it. I've been looking up relatives but," she sniffled just a little bit before continuing "None of them wants me so far."

Both men were silent for a long time. This girl had been on her own since she was ten years old. She'd been rejected by family member after family member. Munch spoke "Why didn't you just go to social services?"

"It's not an option," Annie shook her head and focused on her folded hands "I have one family member left before I have to give up. I don't even know if I'll even find her in Manhattan," she hung her head.

"We'll help you," Fin offered "Do you know her name?"

"Yeah," Annie said, cheering up momentarily "She's my fifth cousin twice removed. Her name is Olivia Benson."

The side of the booth opposite from Annie became engulfed in stunned silence. Munch and Fin both realized what was so familiar about her. She didn't really look like Olivia but she seemed to possess the same good nature. Even though there was no physical resemblance, it was clear that this girl was related.

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Casey lay in her bed, unable to sleep. Her appointment was in the morning and then she would find out for sure if she was or wasn't pregnant. She tried to remember back to the night that she had met the man she had slept with. It had been a long day and she had decided to go bar hopping. She generally went alone after the really tough days. She remembered that she had already had a few drinks in her when he had sat down beside her.

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He sat down beside her and smiled a dazzling smile. She glanced over and appraised him. He had dark hair, dark eyes and of course there was that smile. She returned his smile "Hi," she said seductively.

"Hi," his smile grew bigger. He flagged down the bartender and ordered a beer. He turned back to Casey "So what's your name?" he asked.

"Casey," she answered. She could feel the blush creeping up her cheeks simply from the power of his smile and of course the inhibition lowering effects of the alcohol "What's yours?" she asked.

He hesitated for a moment but answered "I'm Ellis," his voice was just to die for and Casey felt herself falling hard.

"How come I haven't seen you around here before?" she asked with a sly smile as she nursed yet another drink.

"I'm not from around here," he began to explain. He had no idea why he was telling all of this to a complete stranger "I've only come to the city a couple of times before. I have… some business to attend to."

"What kind of business?" Casey asked, leaning in interested.

"Family business," Ellis answered simply.

"Vague much?" Casey grinned.

Ellis ordered another drink before continuing "I just have to find someone. I haven't had any luck and I have to leave tomorrow."

"Where are you going?" Casey asked. If this hansom man was about to walk out of her life forever, she wanted to know where he was going.

"Moscow," he answered her question and managed to create a plethora of new questions in her mind.

She decided to ignore the questions and instead she took his hand in hers and pulled him from his barstool and into a very passionate kiss "Let's go back to my place," she offered.

"You work fast," Ellis said breathlessly as he pulled away. She was beautiful but she was drunk. He would have to turn her down. Just as he was about to protest, Casey paid the bartender and pulled Ellis out of the bar.

When they reached her apartment, they made love in practically every room. It was something that Casey would feel bad about in the morning, especially when she discovered that Ellis had left before she woke up.

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Ellis had never even given her a last name. Casey groaned. Maybe this baby would be a good thing for her. It would keep her from going out and bar hopping late at night and picking up strange men. But Ellis had seemed so nice. Casey felt like smacking herself, just because he was nice didn't mean that she had to sleep with him the second she met him, even though she probably would never get the chance to see him again.

She rolled over in bed and tried to get her mistake out of her head. She had to get to sleep if she was going to be alert for her doctor's appointment which was… she looked at the clock and groaned again. Her doctor's appointment was in a little over six hours.

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"Wow," Olivia gasped as she and Elliot lay naked on her bed "That was… wow," she wasn't exactly sure when they had moved from the couch into the bedroom but she knew that it had been good. Yes, very, very good.

"I love you," Elliot whispered as he held her tight.

"I love you too," she whispered back. Tonight was not a night for discussing the ramifications of those words. Tonight was just about the two of them. They were the only thing that mattered in the other's mind and that was how it was supposed to be.

They would have been able to revel in each other's presence for a bit longer if Olivia's cell phone hadn't begun ringing. She groaned and reluctantly separated herself from Elliot "Please let it be a wrong number," she prayed out loud as she flipped it open "Benson."

Elliot propped himself up on one elbow and listened intently to Olivia's side of the conversation. He hoped that it wasn't work. He didn't want to deal with the scum of the earth when he had just been so happy. Reality crashes down hard on people when it wants to.

"John," Olivia grumbled "Last time I checked, you were still in the same time zone as us… What was that? …That's… she said that… Oh my God… When are you coming back? …Tomorrow noon at the station… got it… Tell her I say hi… Tell her I can't wait to meet her… Okay, thanks John," she hung up the phone and turned to Elliot. She was smiling broadly "I have a cousin."

**TBC**

**A/N: Well this was chapter one. I want to know if ya'll think I should continue. I'll take the good and the bad reviews and the ones that are full of theories. I love to hear theories. I'm sorry if the EO seems rushed but I have a lot going on here and I was afraid that if I tried to make it too subtle, it wouldn't get through. I promise that there will be some nice EO angst later on if you guys want me to continue this story. So please review and tell me what you think. I'll stop rambling now.**


	2. Chapter 2: Family

**Through It All**

**Chapter 2: Family**

Elliot broke out into a grin as wide as Olivia's "A cousin?" he asked. While he was happy for her, he still maintained a healthy skepticism. Still he couldn't deny that he rarely saw Olivia smile like that.

"Yeah," she answered, scooting into his embrace once more "Her name is Annie and she's fourteen."

"How come you never heard about her before?" Elliot asked.

"She's from the other side of the country," Olivia answered after a brief pause. She pressed a gentle kiss to Elliot's lips "I can't wait to meet her," she told him "I didn't even get a chance to talk to her on the phone. Munch said that as soon as they got her some food she practically passed out like she'd been awake for weeks or something," she paused again "Elliot, my cousin has been on the run since she was ten."

Elliot gasped audibly "So young," he murmured. He felt for the poor kid. He would have felt for her even if she hadn't been Olivia's cousin but just that extra personal connection fairly ripped his heart in two.

"Munch said that they're bringing her to the station tomorrow," Olivia paused again "You know that case they went upstate to help on?" she asked.

Elliot nodded. Munch and Fin had gone upstate to assist in the investigation into the rapes and murders of several young teens. He involuntarily pulled Olivia closer as the realization hit him "Oh Liv," he whispered.

"If they hadn't decided to do the stakeout tonight," Olivia whispered. All the information that Munch had given her so quickly over the phone was settling in. It settled unevenly, different parts surfacing at odd times.

"Olivia," Elliot whispered as he held her tight "You can't think like that."

"I have a cousin," she whispered "And if they had done the stakeout any other night, I would never have known," she openly sobbed into Elliot's chest.

"She's safe now Olivia," Elliot soothed her. He stroked her hair and was simply there for her. She needed him and he wasn't going anywhere, not tonight, or ever if he could help it. He pulled the blankets over the two of them "We should get some sleep," he told her "Otherwise, you'll hardly be able to stand when you meet her tomorrow."

"It is tomorrow," she chuckled softly as she closed her eyes. "I have a cousin," Olivia repeated softly just before she drifted off in Elliot's arms.

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He dragged his bleeding body through the undergrowth laboriously. He was lucky that the bullet had been deflected by the cross that he war around his neck but he had been badly beaten before that and he couldn't stand under his own power. The night was cold and he was sure that he would freeze to death if he didn't find shelter soon. He heard the wolves growing closer and knew that he had to hurry. The problem was that with each inch that he pulled his broken body along the ground, the pain grew ten fold.

He couldn't let them get away with this. He knew that they would go back to his hotel room and find everything. The information on the still unaccounted for members of his once great family. The few who carried the bloodline that weren't under the thumb of the syndicate or dead. There were only two of them and neither had any idea of the danger they were in.

He had tried to find them both but had never been successful. He hoped that the syndicate would have much worse luck than he had. Though it was diluted, the bloodline was still powerful in even distant relations if the syndicate got to them, it could be very bad.

He finally stopped, unable to go any further. He collapsed onto the cold ground. He didn't want to give in but darkness slowly claimed him. As he faded away, he cursed himself for not being able to protect his cousins.

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Annie woke up in a real bed for the first time in months. She stretched, sat up and looked around the hotel room. Fin had offered her his bed in the hotel sweet and he had taken the couch. Fin had actually gotten into an argument with John over who would give her their bed. Annie smiled to herself when she remembered that Fin had one the argument by making a comment about couches being bad for the backs of old men. John had shrugged his shoulders in defeat and retreated.

Annie reached for her bag and pulled out a change of clothes. She had only two sets to choose from other than the one she was wearing. She was glad that before she had taken that bus the day before that she had taken the time to do laundry at a laundry mat near the bus stop. She would hate to face her cousin in dirty clothes. Even when they were clean, they weren't really all that impressive to look at.

She headed into the bathroom and turned the shower on. A hot shower was a luxury that she rarely got to enjoy. As she stepped under the spray, she couldn't help but hope that she would get to enjoy it a lot more often from now on. Olivia Benson had been last on her list for a reason though. Annie didn't think that Olivia would want anything to do with her. None of the others had and Olivia had what Annie considered a legitimate reason to hate her.

As Annie reveled in the warmth of the shower water, her mind couldn't help but wander. She had been six years old when her grandfather had first stood her in front of the family tree, back in the days when it hung proudly above the mantle in his house, and explained to her about her heritage.

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"That's me," the small child smiled pointing to her name on the family tree. She looked up at her grandfather "I'm on there too," she was in awe of this simple piece of paper.

"Yeah sweetheart," the older man smiled down kindly at his grandchild. He gathered her up into his arms and held her so she could get a closer look at the family tree "And that's your mommy and daddy," he pointed to his daughter's name and the name of her husband.

Annie stared in amazement at how many names were arranged before her. She reached out and her tiny finger traced a line from her name to her mother's name "Helena McDonald," she whispered reverently. Her fingers traced her father's name "Joseph McDonald," she smiled as her finger came to rest on the name that lay just below the two once more "Annie McDonald."

"Yep," her grandfather smiled "That's your family. All of them," he made a sweeping gesture at the family tree "All of these people are our family."

"All of them?" Annie asked. There were after all a lot of people and the little girl had a hard time believing that they were all family.

"Every last one of them," her grandfather told her.

"Wow," she was in even more awe than she had been before. Her small eyes scanned the names when suddenly she stopped "Grandpa," she commanded his attention "Why is this one crossed out?"

Her grandfather set her on the ground again and knelt down to face her "That's a long story sweetie. You're too young to understand."

Annie scrunched up her face "You're always telling me I'm too young. Why is that name crossed out? Is that person still family? You said they were all family so is that person still family even though their name is crossed out?"

The old man grew very serious all of a sudden "Annie," he began "In our hearts, we will always love him but he can no longer be a part of this family."

"Why not?" the inquisitive child asked, scaling the mantle to get a closer look at the crossed off name that had so quickly peeked her interest.

"Annie," her grandfather tried to stop her "If your mother sees you up there…"

"He has a baby," Annie nearly squealed. She had noticed that beneath the name that had been crossed out, another name was clearly visible. This name was not crossed off and Annie was puzzled "Grandpa," she began as he lifted her off the mantle and set her on the ground "Is his baby still part of our family?"

"Yes," he answered simply, moving to sit in the big arm chair beside the fireplace and pulling Annie into his lap. He held his granddaughter close to him as he tried to think of a way to explain such a complicated thing to such a young child.

"Is he a bad man?" Annie suddenly asked.

Her grandfather nodded slightly but then said "No, I don't believe he is but he did a very bad thing."

"I didn't eat my vegetables last night," Annie whispered.

"What honey?" her grandfather was confused by the seemingly unrelated topic.

"Mommy told me that I should eat my vegetables," Annie clarified "And I slipped most of them under the table to Cupid and Elmo," Cupid and Elmo were the family dogs. They were West Highland terriers and for some reason they liked to eat the vegetables that Annie fed them from her own plate.

He chuckled softly at Annie's admission "Honey you really should eat your vegetables," he said kindly.

"I know," Annie hung her head "I did a bad thing Grandpa and I'm sorry. Please don't cross my name out of the family?"

"Oh," he pulled her closer "Honey, no one's gonna cross you out."

"But I did a bad thing like the man who used to be family," she was confused, unable to grasp the true gravity of the situation.

"Yes but-"

"I said I was sorry," she began to cry "Didn't that man say he was sorry? He got crossed out of the family. But he was sorry wasn't he?"

"No," her grandfather whispered "No he wasn't sorry for what he did," she was too young to hear this. He felt incredibly uncomfortable. Where was his daughter to tell them that lunch was ready?

"Where's his baby?" Annie asked "Do we love her? You said we still love him even though he's not part of the family but she's not crossed out so is she part of the family?"

"She's far away honey," he told her "Yes we still love her and we have loved her since the day she was born."

"Then why can't she come live with you and me and mommy and daddy?" Annie asked innocently.

"I'm not sure she'd want to," he answered her.

"We could ask her," Annie countered with the pure innocence that can only come from a child who has no idea what the world truly holds "Mommy always tells me that I should ask if I'm not sure about something so I do."

Her grandfather allowed himself to chuckle just a little bit "You certainly do," he smiled at her before becoming serious again "She wouldn't want to live with us because…" he paused to think "She'd be mad at us."

"Why?" Annie asked "We love her don't we? She's family right? Why would she be mad at us? Is she mad because her daddy got crossed out of the family?"

"No," her grandfather reassured her quickly "She's not mad at us about that."

"Why is she mad at us then?" Annie asked "Maybe if we tell her that we love her, maybe then she won't be mad."

Annie's grandfather had nothing to say to this.

"Lunch is ready," Helena appeared in the door of the living room and held her arms out to Annie who ran to her mother happily.

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Annie had never gotten a clear answer on why Olivia would be mad at her. She had grown to believe that Olivia perhaps hated her and maybe even blamed her for whatever bad thing her father had done. She couldn't help being nervous about meeting her cousin. If Olivia did indeed hate her, what was she going to do?

She toweled off and dressed quickly. She was brushing her hair in the still foggy mirror when she heard a knock on the bathroom door. She put the brush down and moved to open it. She knew she was taking a long time but she didn't know when the next time would be that she would be able to enjoy the comfort of a real bathroom and not just a public toilet.

"Sorry," she said as she opened the door to see John standing there.

"No," John backed up about three steps "My bad, I thought Fin was in there. I was gonna ask him where you were."

"I'm here," Annie smiled, walking to the bed and packing up her things "When do we leave?" she may have been incredibly apprehensive about meeting Olivia but she didn't want to put it off. She knew that the longer she drew the anticipation out, the more likely she was to start to believe that she would find a home this time and the more disappointed she would be when she was eventually turned away.

"As soon as I find Fin," John said as he scanned the room.

"Did you check the couch?" A voice asked from the doorway.

"Oh," John turned around "I guess it slipped my mind."

"A lot of things slip your mind or what's left of it," Fin decided to go for the easy jab.

"Well at least-" John was about to hit Fin with a snappy comeback when Annie cut him off.

"Hey Guys?" she asked timidly.

"Yeah," they both turned to her.

She squirmed under their gazes and suddenly lost the nerve to ask what she wanted to ask. She took a long time before she finally blurted out "Can we go grab some breakfast?"

"Sure," John said with a nod in Fin's direction "Mr. Badass over here will pay for it," he chuckled.

"Fine with me," Fin smiled "I'd happy to pay for breakfast." He left the room closely followed by Annie and then John who couldn't help but worry that Fin had given in so easily.

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"Congratulations Casey," the doctor smiled after she had finished examining her "You're pregnant. It looks like you are about four weeks along."

_Four weeks,_ Casey thought. That put the date of conception at the night that she had slept with Ellis "Thank you," she managed to say even though she didn't think that her mouth could work anymore.

"I'd like to set up an appointment with you for the first ultrasound," the doctor said as Casey slid off of the exam table and reached for her clothes "I'll give you a moment to get dressed while I go speak with my receptionist."

Casey nodded numbly. When the doctor had left, she fell apart. She couldn't raise a child on her own. Yet she somehow already felt a deep bond with her child and she knew that there was nothing more that she wanted in the world than to have this baby. After a few minutes of heavy crying, she managed to pull herself together. She finished getting dressed and prepared to walk out of the room when she paused and placed her hand over her still flat stomach "It's you and me little one," she whispered "I'm gonna do right by you. I promise."

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"You should go ask him now," Elliot told Olivia when he saw Cragen go into his office and neglect to fully close the door behind him.

"I know," Olivia answered with a sigh. She rose from her desk and with one last look in Elliot's direction, during which he gave her a reassuring smile, she made her way to the slightly ajar office door and knocked.

Cragen looked up as Olivia entered "Good morning," he greeted her.

Olivia returned the greeting before taking a seat "I need to ask for a little time off," she jumped right in to her reason for coming to speak with him.

"Is this about your cousin?" Cragen asked. When Olivia affixed him with a puzzled gaze he elaborated "John called me last night."

"It's just all happening so fast," she admitted "I'll probably only need the rest of today and then there's the weekend. I just need to get her settled. I shouldn't really need all that long. I'm sure I can be back to work by-"

"Olivia," Cragen cut her off, raising a hand "Take as long as you need. Take care of your cousin, take care of yourself and don't worry about it. With Munch and Fin coming back today, we'll be able to handle things a lot easier around here."

"I'll work until she gets here," Olivia told him as she got up.

"That's fine," he reassured her.

"Thanks," she flashed him a tiny smile as she left the office. She returned to her desk and sat down, focusing completely on her paperwork.

"What did he say?" Elliot asked eagerly, leaning forward in his chair.

"He said I could take as long as I need," she responded without looking up from her paperwork.

"Liv," Elliot leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest "What's up?"

"Hmm?" Olivia asked, still seemingly engrossed in the paperwork.

"Would you look at me?" he asked gently.

"What if Munch and Fin show up?" she asked, glancing at her watch. They were due to arrive any minute.

"So what if they do?" he asked with a laugh "I'm just asking you to look at me. Its not like I'm saying 'Hey, Olivia, I want you so bad right now, let's just do it on top of Munch's desk.'"

At this Olivia through her head back and laughed "If you said that, I think I'd…" she collapsed into fits of giggles "I don't even know what I'd do."

"Would you do it?" he asked teasingly.

Olivia paused and took just a little longer than expected to answer "No."

It was Elliot's turn to laugh hysterically "You actually had to think about it," he was practically rolling in back and forth in his seat.

"Well," she said contemplatively, propping her cheek against the palm of her right hand and fixing Elliot with the most seductive stare imaginable.

He sobered instantly "Oh," he whispered "That's what you didn't want Munch and Fin to see… wow."

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"You're sure she said she can't wait to meet me?" Annie asked. She was standing outside the precinct with Munch and Fin. Somehow this time she was much more afraid than she had been all the other times. Maybe it was that Olivia was the last family she had or perhaps it was that she was sure that she would be instantly hated but she was petrified now that she was there. Her cousin was in the very building that she stood in front of and she was too afraid to go inside to meet her.

"Hey," John said, putting a hand on Annie's shoulder "I'm quoting her exactly here. She said 'Tell her I can't wait to meet her.' and I know she means it."

"She's gonna hate me," Annie whispered, beginning to tremble slightly.

"No she won't," Fin told her firmly "Now come on."

"I'm not ready yet," Annie told him. These two seemed nice enough and they were friends with her cousin but that did nothing to assuage her fears.

"Captain's expecting us," Fin said to John.

John nodded and turned to Annie "And Olivia's expecting you kiddo," he opened the door of the precinct "I promise, she'll love you."

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"Where are they?" Olivia asked, glancing at the clock again "They should have been here already. What if something happened to them?" she rose from her desk and began to pace.

"Liv, take it easy," Elliot got up and moved to intercept her "You're already acting like a mother hen and you haven't even met her yet."

"Like you wouldn't be worried if it were your kid," Olivia snapped. She calmed instantly "Sorry, its just that…"

"I know," Elliot told her as he took her into a hug "They'll be here," he told her "You know how those two are always late."

Olivia nodded "Yeah," when she saw those two, she was going to hug them for saving her cousin's life and then she was going to kill them for making her worry.

"Besides," Elliot smiled "It's only been ten minutes." He continued to hold Olivia in his arms. The peaceful hug was interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat. The two broke apart to see Munch and Fin standing in the doors to the squad room. "Hi," Elliot coughed and turned to Olivia to notice that her cheeks were bright red. He assumed that his must have been as well.

Olivia's embarrassment quickly dissipated however when she noticed that something wasn't right "Where is she?" she asked almost frantically. Munch stepped to one side to reveal a rather scared looking teenager with dark hair and dark eyes. Olivia knew that Annie was fourteen but the girl didn't look older than twelve. She was skinny to the point of looking unhealthy and Olivia wondered when the last time was that this child had had a decent meal. Annie clung to one of the straps of her backpack with one hand and the other she ran nervously through her hair. Olivia took a cautious step towards the girl "Annie?" she whispered, feeling the moisture gathering in her eyes.

Annie had tears in her own eyes as she whispered in return "Hi."

In two seconds Olivia had crossed the room and enveloped Annie in a tight hug "Welcome home," she cried into the teenager's hair.

**TBC**

**A/N: Okay "Finding Olivia" fans, I promise I'm working on the next chapter of that story but I just had to get the ball rolling on this one. The first chapter here didn't really give you an idea of the plot and this one doesn't really either. Please review and tell me what you think. Remember, I love theories, so anything you want to toss my way would be awesome. Even if you tell me that you hate it. I promise that Casey will come into play more in the later chapters.**


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